The 9th annual M.D.A. Benefit Team Bass Tournament will cast of Aug. 24 on the 4-Rivers near Jonesville. The host, McCartney Oil Company of Jena, along with many sponsors has made this annual fundraiser a success. Over the years we have raised thousands of dollars for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Each year the number of entries increases and again this year we look for a record turnout.

The 4-Rivers offer the contestants miles and miles of water to look for the winning five-bass limit. The event is open to fishing from Jonesville Lock and Dam all the way north to the Colombia Lock and Dam. The official launch sites are the public landing near Harrisonburg and the landing at little River Park. The weigh-in and awards presentation will be at Little River Park. Entry forms are available at several locations. Come join us on Aug. 25 for the M.D.A. Team Bass Tournament. This is a good event to benefit a great cause.

The best news about fishing and August is we’re one month closer to September. With surface water temps in the mid to low 90s the fishing will not be that great this month. No surprise there. August is always a tough month to catch fish. Night fishing is a good way to beat the heat but the night bite is not much better than the daytime bite. Once the sun goes down the heat rises from the water and the surface activity is not that good. Your best bet for bass at night is to fish the lighted piers, shallow cypress trees and seas walls with spinnerbaits, jigs and plastics with a real light slip sinker.

Rivers usually offer a better bite than the land-locked lakes during the summer months. Anywhere there is current present the fish are more active. The Old Rivers offer some current and that should be the best place to catch fish this month. The river stage at Vidalia today is 25.1 feet and falling. Forecasters predicted a stage of 23.7 feet by Saturday. That’s a good stage for everything — the bass, bream, crappie and white bass. The slow fall should make the shallow fish more active.

For bass fish during the early morning hours try the shallow dead timber with plastics fished behind a light slip sinker. Shallow diving crankbaits like a Bagley KB1 or Bandit 100 series will work as well on the Old River bass.

If the shallow bite is tough move to bluff banks and the mouth of the drains. In this area heavy jigs and big deep diving crankbaits work well.

As the water falls the Old River crappie will begin to pull out to the edge of the dead timber and they will eventually be holding way off shore suspended over deep water. When this happens, the best thing you can do to load up on the big slabs is to drift fish with multiple poles over 25 to 45 feet of water and fish about 12 to 15 feet down. A good sonar unit is a must when searching for crappie or bass holding offshore.

Thank goodness we only have one more miserable month to fish in the heat. Of course early September can be hot but the nights will begin to cool off and the fishing will get better. Try to stay cool this month if that’s possible and good fishing to all.

Eddie Roberts writes a weekly fishing column for The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached by e-mail at fishingwitheddie@highsteam.net.